A Brief Overview of the Korean Sex Industry

Sex trafficking is a problematic franchise in Korea that is challenging in the way that it effectively functions within the country and continues externally outside of its borders into every Korean community in the world. In Korea, one majority of sex trafficked victims are child runaways who have been physically or sexually abused as well as those who are looking to liberate themselves from the intense Korean academic system they have been a part of. The other majority are workers who have been lured within, into, and out of the country with false advertisements of decent jobs. Traffickers utilize the internet to prey on and manipulate vulnerable children and teenagers as well as those seeking employment—both girls and women–all of whom are desperately seeking a way out of their undesirable situations. Victims are targeted through networking sites, blogs, job sites, and online gaming sites. Once they have been trafficked, they are forcefully placed into room salons (“refined” Korean brothels with caste systems and tiers), the porn industry, massage parlors, red light district alleyways, underground sex houses, call girl businesses, or image clubs (fetish clubs with rooms furnished and decorated by themes such as hospital rooms, school classrooms, subway cars, dental offices, movie theaters, parks, etc…) throughout Korea, other Asian countries, and America. Although, many females are initiated and barricaded into the sex industry through violence, another common method used by pimps in Korea is to manipulate the victims using high debt accruals as these pimps are fully aware that most of these victims have come from desperate financial situations. In brothels such as a room salon, there are many rooms, usually without windows or with completely tinted windows. These room salons are heavily guarded. In each room is a karaoke machine attached to a television screen, soft bench-like seating built into three parts of the room, a large table in the middle, and a restroom with a toilet and sink in a tiny closet of a space. The room salon females are subjected to being treated like cattle where they are presented to customers in groups and chosen upon their appearance. They are actually dressed elegantly and forced to make daily trips to stylists who work with the room salons to do professional hair and makeup. All clothing and styling are added on to their debts. Also, the women are forced to dance with, sing to, feed, pour drinks, and drink excessive amounts of alcohol with the customers. Basically, they must cater to every whim of the customer and be completely compliant with their demands or face repercussions such as severe physical or sexual violence. Threatening to expose them as prostitutes to their families or harm their family members are also common techniques used by the pimps. It is not uncommon for pimps to train room salon women to provide atypical, perverse, and deviant entertainment for customers. Women who become pros are then forced to train other women as well. The women are also subjected to men violating them in the rooms with other people around as the men usually come together in groups and share the room together. Sex does not usually occur inside the actual room salons however if customers request sex, these women are sold by the pimps and madams of the room salons into sex houses and lovetels (motels that rent rooms by the hour for sex) after the room salons close. The women who are most desired and most frequently visited are given preferential treatment by their pimps over the ones who are less popular. The goal of these pimps is to crush the spirits of these women so that they become more and more deviant. These women begin suffering from depression, anxiety, and shame so become extremely dependent on alcohol and cigarettes–vices that are supplied by the room salons as long as customers continue to pay. Because of the resemblance these room salons have to karaoke rooms, they are easily disguised in Korea and America.

Women who are trafficked into massage parlors, red light district alleyways, sex houses, and the porn industry are not always mandated to drink as room salon workers are. However they are forced to have sex with five to twenty men in one day. Pimps train women who are then forced to train other women on how to deal and service customers properly. Condom usage is not always enforced so male customers always have the option to refuse a condom making the female workers more susceptible to diseases and in many cases unwanted pregnancies. Female contraceptives are not promptly provided for these forced sex workers so often abortions are secretly performed in small clinics where identification is not required as abortions are illegal in South Korea. Even if a woman wanted to keep the baby, there are no centers where services are offered to care for the mothers and newborn babies who come from these situations. The trafficked women in these types of outlets are monitored at all times even when they are given time off. Pimps and traffickers work together to keep a close watch and stronghold on their female captives by withholding identification cards, passports, and all family information such as home addresses, telephone numbers, and names. What sets the Korean sex industry apart from other Asian countries is that domestically, many children succumb to prostitution because of unbelievably intense academic and societal pressures coupled with lack of intervention and education from families, churches, and schools. In this way, direct recruitment activity by pimps is far less in number whereas actual grooming practices once the child has entered into the sex selling arena is much more common. However, on the international side, Korean traffickers prey on mostly women from poverty who are desperately seeking employment into or out of Korea.

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International Organizations

8th Day Center for Justice, a Roman Catholic non-profit organization based in Chicago, Illinois
A Better World, an organization that is based in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada
A21 Campaign, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, non-governmental organization that works to fight human trafficking
ACT Alberta, a Canadian coalition of Government of Alberta representatives, non-governmental organizations, community organizations, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Agape International Missions, a nonprofit organization in Cambodia
Arizona League to End Regional Trafficking, a coalition representing partnerships with law enforcement, faith-based communities, non-profit organizations, social service agencies, attorneys and concerned citizens
Breaking Out Corporation, a 501 (c) (3), a pro-active, not-for-profit organization whose mission is dedicated to identify, investigate and rescue Victims of Human Trafficking.
California Against Slavery, a human rights organization directed at strengthening California state laws to protect victims of sex trafficking
Called to Rescue, a non-profit worldwide organization based in Vancouver, Washington given to rescuing minor children from sex trafficking, violence and abuse.
Centre to End All Sexual Exploitation, a nonprofit organization that helps human trafficking victims, sex workers, and the homeless by providing them with resources
Chab Dai, a coalition founded by Helen Sworn that connects Christian organizations committed to ending sexual abuse and trafficking.
Childhope Asia Philippines, an international, non-profit, non-political, non-sectarian organization whose principal purpose is to advocate for the cause of street children throughout the world
Children's Organization of South East Asia, the Children's Organization of Southeast Asia, COSA is an International Organization which works towards the prevention of child human trafficking and sexual exploitation within the Northern regions of Thailand.
Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, an international non-governmental organization opposing human trafficking, prostitution, and other forms of commercial sex
Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking, a Los Angeles-based anti-human trafficking organization
Deborah's Gate, a human trafficking victims safe house run by The Salvation Army in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada that opened in 2009
ECPAT, an international non-governmental organization and network headquartered in Thailand which is designed to end the commercial sexual exploitation of children
The Emancipation Network, an international organization dedicated to fighting human trafficking and modern-day slavery
EVE, an advocacy group based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Face to Face Bulgaria, an organization whose primary mission is to prevent cases of forced prostitution and human trafficking in Bulgaria
Florida Abolitionist, a nonprofit, non-governmental organization opposing human trafficking in Florida, United States
GABRIELA, a leftist Filipino organization that advocates for women's issues
Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women, a network of more than 100 non-governmental organizations from all regions of the world, who share a deep concern for the women, children and men whose human rights have been violated by the criminal practice of trafficking in persons
Global Impact Phils Foundation, a Philippines-based organization that works to prevent human-trafficking
Happy Horizons Children's Ranch is a humanitarian ministry of the Assemblies of God, Philippines. It is a non-profit organization dedicated to the rehabilitation and defense of street children in the Philippines
Ing Makababaying Aksyon, a feminist service institution that seeks to empower women and work for a society that genuinely recognizes and upholds women's rights
International Justice Mission, a U.S.-based non-profit human rights organization that operates in countries all over the world to rescue victims of individual human rights abuse
ITEMP - Institute for Trafficked, Exploited & Missing Persons, an international organization dedicated to ending contemporary slavery and human trafficking through public awareness, research and direct intervention.
La Strada International Association, an international NGO network addressing trafficking in human beings in Europe
London Anti-Human Trafficking Committee, a London, Ontario, Canada-based nonprofit organization opposing human trafficking by means of advocacy and education
Love 146- Vision- The abolition of child trafficking and slavery, nothing less.
Maiti Nepal, a non-profit organization in Nepal dedicated to helping victims of sex trafficking
MANNA Freedom, the human trafficking intervention arm of MANNA Worldwide working to prevent human trafficking in Eastern Europe through the building of Bridge To Life Homes.
Men Against Sexual Trafficking, a London, Ontario, Canada-based organization that opposes human trafficking by educating men on the issue and encouraging them to stop buying sexual services provided by human trafficking victims
Mongolian Gender Equality Center, a non-governmental organization based in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
NASHI, a Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada-based organisation that opposes human trafficking by raising awareness through education
Not for Sale Campaign, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based out of California
Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons, a government agency responsible for coordinating efforts to address human trafficking in British Columbia, Canada
Polaris Project, a nonprofit, non-governmental organization that works to combat and prevent modern day slavery and human trafficking
PREDA Foundation, a charitable organization that was founded in Olongapo City, Philippines in 1974
Rapha House, a public benefit 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to ending human trafficking, bonded labor and the sexual exploitation of children.
Ratanak International, an organization that rescues children from sexual slavery and then provides them with education, rehabilitation, and safety
Redlight Children Campaign, a non-profit organization created by New York lawyer and president of Priority Films Guy Jacobson and Israeli actress Adi Ezroni in 2002 to combat worldwide child sexual exploitation and human trafficking
Redlight Traffic, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that uses technology to unite organizations, communities, and individuals and say "NO" to human trafficking
Ricky Martin Foundation, an organization with the mission to advocate for the well-being of children around the world
Ride for Refuge, a cycling event that raises awareness and funds for displaced persons, including human trafficking victims
Salvando Corazones is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that runs safe houses and is dedicated to the fight against human trafficking in Costa Rica.
Shared Hope International, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization which exists to rescue and restore women and children in crisis
Slavery Footprint, a nonprofit organization based in Oakland, California that works to end human trafficking and modern-day slavery.
Slavery Report, a nonprofit organization based in Northern Virginia that works to maximize human trafficking reporting.
Somaly Mam Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on combating the global sex slave trade through supporting the rescue, rehabilitation, and reintegration of the victims and through raising global awareness on the issue
Stop Child Trafficking Now, an organization founded by Lynette Lewis, an author and public speaker
Stop the Traffik, a campaign coalition which aims to bring an end to human trafficking worldwide
The Defender Foundation, a 501(c)3 Non-Governmental Agency formed to fight human trafficking through active activism of volunteers and tactical rescue teams (Shield Teams) who physically rescue victims both in the U.S. and worldwide
The Protection Project, a 501(c)3 Non-Governmental organization based at the Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies in Washington DC which advises governments on drafting and implementing anti-trafficking legislation and promotes the inclusion of trafficking in the curriculum of universities around the world
Third World Movement Against the Exploitation of Women, an organization directed towards the liberation of women from all kinds of oppression and exploitation based on sex, race or class
Tiny Hands International, a Christian nonprofit organization dedicated to helping orphaned and abandoned children and fighting sex trafficking in South Asia
Visayan Forum Foundation, a non-profit, non-stock and tax-exempt non-government organization in the Philippines established in 1991
Vital Voices, an international, non-profit, non-governmental organization that works with women leaders in the areas of economic empowerment, women's political participation, and human rights
Walk With Me Canada Victim Services, Canada based, providing victim services for survivors of human trafficking
Word Made Flesh, serving victims of human trafficking in El Alto, Bolivia